Sassy Ever After: You Bet Your Sass

by Melanie James

  Sofia locked her legs around his back and dug her heels in, allowing him to press even deeper.

  “Do you like that, love?” he asked, picking up his speed.

  “Oh God, yes! Please don’t stop. It feels so fucking good. You feel so good.” She held on for dear life as Lars picked up his pace, frantically thrusting in and out, pounding her pussy with an enthusiasm she had never felt.

  Her orgasm crashed over her in an instant, without any warning. Pleasure drowned out her senses and any reasonable thought processes.

  The beast within her took advantage of the distraction and struck instantly. Sofia didn’t realize what had happened until the taste of blood coated her throat. She tried to pull back, horrified at her wolf’s behavior, but it was useless. The second Lars sunk his fangs into her neck, she felt the mating connection click into place, and the unfamiliar sensations pouring through her propelled her to greater heights on the wave of yet another climax.

  Lars grunted as her pussy tightened around his cock, milking every last drop of his seed from him.

  Her wolf had joined with his to become one.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Lars had never experienced such joy in his life. When Tanner had teleported him to Blue Creek, his outlook had been pretty damn dim. He had been embarrassed, ashamed, and highly pissed off at the predicament he’d gotten himself into.

  Never in a bafrillion mother freaking years had he expected to find his mate let alone complete the mating ceremony on his first day in town.

  Yet there he was, gasping for air as his mate claimed him for her own.

  “I can’t believe that you are mine.” Lars ran his fingertips gently over her side. “I couldn’t have asked for a more perfect mate. The gods have truly blessed me.”

  Immediately Sofia tensed up under him.

  “Did I say something wrong?”

  “I—I can’t do this. You need to leave.” Sofia shoved at his chest, insisting that he move.

  “I don’t understand. What’s the matter, love?” Lars was well and truly perplexed by his mate’s actions. After all, she was the one who had initiated the mating ceremony. He’d be lying if he said it hadn’t been on his mind, but he would have gladly waited to claim her if that was what she had wanted—even if his wolf had objected.

  “It’s not you. It’s me. I can’t be your mate. I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have done that. My wolf took control and…”

  “Sofia, love, I knew from the moment I saw you that you were the one meant for me. More than that, my wolf knew immediately. I’m sure yours did as well. That’s why you had such a strong reaction to my presence. You had to have felt it.”

  Lars tried to calm her down, to get her to open up and talk. It wasn’t like they could just up and quit being mates. Life didn’t work that way for shifters. It never had, and never would. The Fates saw to it.

  Her wolf wouldn’t let her walk away from him any more than his wolf would walk away from hers. Their beasts needed each other, just as the earth needed its moon. He couldn’t survive without her. She was his every heartbeat.

  “Lars, I need time. Time to think about all of this. Please. I just need a little bit of space right now.”

  Lars threw on his clothes and watched with a broken heart as Sofia angrily wiped at the tears that had started to fall. Chloe’s warning popped into his head, forcing him to back off.

  As much as he wanted to argue his point and work out their feelings together, Lars respected her wishes. With one last kiss to her forehead, he put one foot in front of the other and forced his legs to move. “Lock the deadbolt when I leave? I need to know you’re safe.”

  Sofia nodded and followed Lars to the door.

  “I left my number on the table, so you know how to get a hold of me.”

  “Thank you.”

  Lars waited until he heard the tumbler slide into place. Seeing how upset she was, watching the tears flow down her face, crushed him. He wanted nothing more than to wrap her in his arms and show her that everything would be okay. But he didn’t. He leaned against the door frame, and whispered a small prayer to Freyja to watch over his mate.

  ***

  The spray of hot water washed over him as thoughts of Sofia flooded his mind. He loved how her passion had burned with a ferocity that had scorched his soul. What he hadn’t loved was seeing that switch flip that turned her from a fiery seductress to an ice queen. Had something happened to her in the past that caused such a strong reaction? Either way he was bound and determined to get to the bottom of it. Had it been one of her former lovers? An old boyfriend that he needed to kill?

  Lars was determined to find a way to reach his mate, to make her understand how much he wanted her. How much he needed her. He’d lived his whole life in hopes of finding her. And now that he had, he wasn’t about to give up and walk away just because she had cold feet.

  Lars sat on the edge of the king-sized bed in his hotel room, wishing like hell he were snuggled up against his mate. He savagely fought every instinct in his body that told him to go to her. His wolf paced back and forth in his mind. The beast was more agitated than he’d ever witnessed.

  The animal let out a single sad howl—almost as if he were calling to his mate, begging for her presence.

  “That’s it! I don’t know why I didn’t think of it earlier.”

  The wolf stopped pacing. “What are you talking about?”

  “Our mating connection! Can we talk to our mate through the connection?”

  The wolf didn’t hesitate, and tried immediately to reach their mate.

  “Sofia, can you hear me?”

  Chapter Fourteen

  Who the hell was that? Sofia shot up and off the couch when she heard the male voice calling her name. “Is someone there?”

  Scanning the area and coming up empty, she decided to search every room, closet, and cabinet, expecting to find someone hiding in her home. For good measure, she even checked under the bed and living room furniture.

  “Are you there, love?”

  Sofia’s head snapped around. “Lars?” She sprinted to the front door expecting to find him standing there. “What the hell is going on? Where is he?”

  Her wolf finally spoke up. “He’s speaking through our mating connection.”

  “How do I answer him?” Sofia had no idea how any of this worked. She’d never been mated before.

  “Try answering him in your head,” the wolf suggested.

  Sofia closed her eyes and imagined Lars standing next to her. “Lars? Is it really you?”

  His reply was immediate. “Yes, love. Are you okay?”

  “This is so weird. You know, I thought there was an intruder. I searched the house top to bottom.”

  Lars laughed at her admission. “That’s actually pretty funny. I can’t get you out of my mind. I’ve tried closing my eyes, but all I see is your face staring back at me.”

  Sofia didn’t know what to make of his confession. Of all the guys she had ever dated, none of them had shown her the attention Lars was bestowing upon her.

  There was no denying the instant attraction she’d felt for him. It was an overwhelming, all-consuming fascination from the moment he had walked on stage. Her wolf had felt it too. It was undeniable.

  Yet her wolf hadn’t warned her that they were mates. Or had she? Sofia thought back over the conversations with her wolf. Had she missed something? And there it was, the one statement her wolf had made that she’d failed to pick up on: Her wolf had told her she considered Lars to be hers.

  “I know deep down that you are my mate. It has been decreed by the Fates. But I’ll be the first to admit I know nothing about having or being a mate. If I’m being perfectly honest with you, I never intended to be mated to anyone.”

  “How is that possible?” Lars asked. “You’re a shifter. Finding your mate means finding the other half of your soul. All I’ve ever wanted was to find you. To love and cherish you.”

  Sofia drew in a deep breath, fillin
g her lungs to capacity. The last thing she expected from Lars was a deep conversation regarding his feelings. He may have been her mate, but it didn’t change the fact that he was a complete stranger. She knew absolutely nothing about him.

  Sofia was not the type of person to act on impulse or make life-altering decisions without agonizing for weeks over the potential consequences. Her carefully constructed life was already hanging on by a thread. Hell, she hadn’t even dealt with the fallout from Sam yet. That alone was a disaster in the making.

  How much should she open up to Lars? That was the question of the hour. Sure, he was her mate and he said he cared, but how could he? They had only just met.

  “I understand and respect the fact that you’ve lived your life waiting to find your mate. However, I haven’t. I’ve lived my life the way I wanted, not letting anyone plan my life for me. So for you to show up on my doorstep and proclaim that you have any feelings for me makes me question your intentions. What is it that you want?”

  “I want a chance to prove to you, my mate, that I’m the one you’re meant to be with. And whether you want to believe it or not, I do care very much about you. Probably too much for my own good.”

  Lars seemed to be full of sweet lines that the majority of women would probably love to hear, but Sofia was different. She’d heard far too many of those sweet lines, and they made her stomach churn. They reminded her of all the losers she had dated, with their fancy promises that they had no intention of keeping, the sweet little nothings they whispered in her ear while screwing around with someone else. Sofia had sworn she’d never fall for that shit again.

  “Lars, I think you’re in love with the idea of a mate. You know nothing about me. Not my favorite meal, my favorite color, my favorite drink—not even my last name. You have no idea what makes me laugh or cry. Loving someone means learning not only who that person is, but why that person is who they are.”

  With that last little exchange, Sofia closed the connection she had with Lars. She didn’t want him invading her thoughts or memories without her permission, and she had nothing else to say to him at that moment. She had asked for time for a reason. Her mind and her heart needed to process all that had happened without his influence.

  Her wolf bowed her head and curled up in the corner of her mind, saddened by this turn of events. The animal didn’t understand Sofia’s reservations when it came to falling blindly into her mate’s arms. She just didn’t work that way. She had spoken the truth when she’d told Lars that she had never planned to take a mate.

  She didn’t want to tell Lars about her human-only clause when it came to the men she had chosen to date. Humans, especially their males, were incapable of forming a true mating connection with her wolf, or so she’d always been told. Had she ever actually fallen in love with any of the men she had dated, and had anyone ever actually popped the question, she would’ve probably said yes. If there was one thing she wasn’t opposed to, it was a big fancy wedding. Sadly, those weren’t all that common in the shifter world.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Lars tossed and turned restlessly for a few hours before giving up on the idea of sleep. Maybe a quick shift to his wolf and a long run would tire him out. Hopefully it would also get his mind off of Sofia for a while.

  He had no sooner thought of allowing his wolf to take control than he felt the majik wash over his body. Bones shifted and fur sprouted as his wolf calmly took form. His wolf headed away from town, towards the densely wooded forest where he was most at home. Though the terrain was nowhere near as beautiful as that of Black Paw, it was majestic in its own right.

  Before Lars knew it, he had traveled from one edge of town to the other. His wolf had taken him to his mate. The beast sat quietly on the edge of the tree line across from her house, searching for any clues of her distress.

  “This is insane. For the love of Odin, please tell me why we’re stalking our mate. My hope was to get her off of my mind for the evening and give her the space and time she asked for.”

  “We have to be near her. I can’t shake the feeling of impending doom, where our mate is concerned.”

  The wolf’s warning was enough to make Lars sit back and shut the fuck up. His wolf had always had an uncanny ability to predict danger, and he’d always listened to his wolf in that regard. Now was not the time to ignore the animal’s instinct.

  Lars had just started to nod off when his wolf whined, dragging him from his desperately needed slumber. He watched as a beat-up old car pulled into Sofia’s driveway.

  “Who the fuck is that?”

  Fury tore through Lars when a human man knocked on Sofia’s door. One by one the lights flickered on as Sofia made her way to the front of the house. Even from across the street Lars could smell that the man had polished off his fair share of alcohol before heading to Sofia’s.

  A soft light illuminated the porch. He imagined Sofia looking through the peephole, and debating whether or not she wanted to open the door. It was clear to Lars that she knew the man—though how, he had no idea. The look on his mate’s face was not one of happiness, but of annoyance.

  Gods, she was beautiful even when she seemed to have been woken from sleep. Her hair was disheveled but it didn’t matter to Lars. He loved the way her yoga pants clung to her curves. Lost in his own thoughts, he missed the short conversation between Sofia and her late-night visitor.

  His heart jumped for joy when she slammed the door in the man’s face and turned the porch light off. None of that stopped the guy from frantically pounding on her door, and shouting that he was sorry and that he loved her.

  Rage clouded his vision.

  “So that’s the asshole who hurt our mate. I think we need to teach him a lesson,” Lars said to his wolf.

  The beast wasted no time in trotting across the road closer to the human. The closer Lars got, the stronger the alcohol smell became. He would never understand anyone’s need to get inebriated and go beat on someone’s door.

  Lars watched as the man stumbled down the stairs toward his car. A fierce growl erupted from his muzzle, issuing a warning to the drunken idiot. Lars shifted back to human, wanting to throttle the motherfucker for showing up at his mate’s doorstep at three in the morning.

  More than that, he wanted to rip the fucker’s heart out for hurting his mate. He didn’t care if the man’s transgressions against Sofia had come before he had entered the picture or not. The fact that the man had hurt her was all that registered in his mind.

  “Who the fuck are you?” Lars slammed the guy up against his car and shouted in his face, praying Sofia was out of earshot. He really didn’t need her to find out that his ass had been parked in front of her house all night.

  The man tried to speak, but all he managed to spew from his mouth were incoherent slurred ramblings.

  “I don’t ever want to see you anywhere near Sofia again. Do you understand?”

  The guy nodded his head in an attempt to agree to Lars’ demand, but he just looked like a bobble-head doll attached to the dashboard of a car on a pothole-ridden road.

  Dread filled Lars’ stomach as the man stumbled around his car, got into it, and started it. The asshole was going to drive away like nothing had happened—like he was perfectly sober.

  “I don’t fucking think so.” Lars pulled his cell phone from his pocket and dialed 911. After reporting the driver to authorities and relaying the license plate to the dispatcher, his conscience was clear.

  Lars returned to his wolf form, and ran a perimeter check around Sofia’s house, making sure all was clear before taking a sentry position on her welcome mat.

  Chapter Sixteen

  “Well, well, well. What do we have here?” Chloe asked the ginormous black wolf sprawled across her friend’s porch. She had never seen such a sight, even though she’d been a part of the shifter community all of her life, and she’d be the first to attest to the weird-ass shit she’d had the misfortune of witnessing. Yet the sight of Lars in wolf form, on his bac
k with his legs spread wide, made her giggle.

  “You know, Sofia has a dog house in the backyard. It might have been a bit cozier to sleep there instead of on a concrete porch. Plus, you’d have spared the entire neighborhood from seeing your boy junk.”

  The wolf sat up and stared at Chloe. She continued the one-sided conversation, knowing full well the man inside the wolf heard everything she said.

  “Why don’t you go wait in my car? I just came to check on Sofia and drop something off.” Chloe held up the hot pink bag in her hand. “Since you’re my BFF’s new mate, I’ll be nice and buy you a cup of coffee, and we’ll finish the conversation we started last night. And don’t worry, I won’t tell her I saw you out here. Just stay in wolf form and stay hidden.”

  The wolf nodded his head and trotted off the porch.

  Just as Chloe lifted her hand to knock, the door swung open.

  “Hey. I thought I heard someone talking. What are you doing here?”

  “I just wanted to drop this off for you. I figured after the night you had, you could use this.” Chloe sniffed in the direction of her friend.

  “Would you stop sniffing me?” Sofia swatted at Chloe.

  “I can’t help it… you… smell—oh my god! You’re mated!” Chloe had accepted Lars was her friend’s mate, but holy fuck! Never in a million years had she expected Sofia to complete the mating ceremony so soon.

  “Would you stop yelling? I don’t need all my neighbors to know. Besides, I don’t even know what to think of it myself. It just kind of happened. It appears my wolf has zero self-control.”

  “Wait, so you’re the one who initiated the mating ceremony?” Chloe stood there in complete shock.

  “Something like that. Do you want to come in for a cup of coffee or breakfast?”

  Damn. Double damn. She wanted to stay and get the 411, but she had promised Lars a cup of coffee and an explanation of her warning about Sofia.